In the winter, Pyramid Point trail in the Sleeping Bear Dunes turns into Hoth, and I highly recommend it, Star Wars fan or not. The easy, serene trail of summer transforms into a wild, untamed frontier in the winter. The experience is like none other – and by that, I mean, you might spend some time on all fours or on your bottom sliding!

 

The outing starts by finding the trailhead (a little ways up dirt Basch Road in Leelanau County), which is maybe plowed but mostly just driven over and packed down in a single lane. At the trailhead, you might want to just commit to getting to the lookout point. The trail is packed down and a steady climb to the lookout, about 0.7 miles away and about 900 feet above Lake Michigan. This, in itself, is well worth the outing and a respectable and well-loved route. (FYI: Do not descend the bluff down to the lake – it’s dangerous and rescues happen every year.)

But if you’d like to do more than just see the lookout – this is where the adventure begins.

Once at the lookout (post oohing and aaahing and selfies), you can hang a right, and keep going along the bluff at the top. Watch for the little trail tamped down through the trees and bluffs by a few brave winter souls. The trail will disappear in the wind and snow, but keep going with the lake to your left as your guide.

And this is where things get real – cleats or snowshoes are a MUST. The trail will have icy ups and downs and, frankly, I gave up at a few points and just slid down on my rump or turned around and skittered down backwards on all fours. (More photo opps and definitely  more laughing!)

Once you are through the section snaking through the trees and along the edge of the bluff, the trail opens up again to a vista that reminds you of that Hoth landscape that I warned you about – huge white dunes highlighted in sand, and howling winds coming off the lake. Sounds iffy, right? That’s more of the adventure I’m talking about.

As you hike further out into the dunes and into the elements, tuck into the drifts and sand bowls created by Mother Nature. The beauty of swirled sand and snow is remarkable, unlike any other terrain. The day my husband and I went, a surprise snowstorm blew in and we were covered in huge white flakes. It was freezing. It was wild. It was unforgettable.

You can do an “out and back” and turn around at any point, or you can really brave it and watch for where the trail cuts down the back of the dunes about a mile in (or .3 miles from the lookout). Once down the back of the dune, there is a trail spur that will take you through a meadow (unseen in the snow, though, lol!) and back to the trailhead for a total loop of 1.5 miles.

There is a MAJOR catch though – the dunes that you would playfully run, skip and hop down in the summer, become a sliding cascade in the winter. Frozen sand is surprisingly slick and unpredictable. One minute you’re walking, the next you’re riding a frozen glob of sand down the face of the dune like a cowgirl. Once again, I lost my pride and fell to my bottom – sliding down the hill. It was exhilarating – and the closest I’ve come to being a kid in years! Highly recommended!

Once you are safely at the bottom of the dune, look for a trail that leads back to your right – this will take you back to the trail you started on. The loop took us about 1.5 hours, complete with a few photo opps, my screeching and ruddy red cheeks - top and bottom. There is a bigger loop if you want to keep going that is 2.7 miles, but I have rarely seen anyone break that trail, so it’s hard to find in the winter.

You can find a trail map here, but be warned, there are very few signposts to be found along the way. You will be finding the trail by watching where others broke trail ahead of you. Enjoy the frozen tundra of the Sleeping Bear Dunes in the winter – go before the thaw!